2020

Workforce Asset Management Book of
Knowledge

Lisa Disselkamp, John Wiley and Sons, 2013, 656 pp., $95 (book).

This book serves as a valuable source of
information pertaining to workforce asset management principles. It features
contributions from industry experts covering the knowledge, practices,
regulations and technologies in the domain of workforce management systems. The
information in the book is presented under six broad
units.

The first unit begins with the concept of
workforce asset management as a cross-disciplinary specialty. The evolution and
use of the technology are discussed. The second unit features important issues
such as changing the organization through the use of workforce asset
management, and its impact on organizational readiness, maturity and integrity.

Under the heading, "timekeeping," the third unit
contains detailed discussions regarding workforce management devices and their
functionality. It also deals with federal and state regulations, compliance and
reporting. The fourth unit highlights the important topic of scheduling and
labor management. Scheduling in highly complex industries also is discussed.

Unit five recognizes that the use of data
analytics is on the rise. A sampling of the topics are
formal modeling approaches, data integration and interfaces, data governance,
privacy and security guidelines, and migration management. The last unit
addresses project implementation and support issues. It outlines the roles and
functions of a workforce asset management project manager. It deals with
balancing time, costs and quality in project management. It also helps the
manager design reviews for the new method, technology and processes.

This book is written in simple and
easy-to-understand language. Readers with little to no knowledge of workforce
asset management will understand and be able to apply the concepts with
confidence. The book also serves as a valuable resource for students, employers
and employees. This book is a valuable addition to any library.

Rangarajan ParthasarathyHarvard,
IL

Design of Experiments for
Engineers and Scientists

Jiju Antony, Elsevier, 2014, 220 pp., $69.95
(second edition, book).

This book is comprehensive in its discussion of
experimental design and the pitfalls and issues that must be investigated. The
scenarios are all industrial examples, but the lessons imparted in them are
statistical and apply to many areas of data analysis.

The first four chapters cover the basic
principles of design of experiments (DoE), including confounding and a chapter
on understanding interactions. It includes examples of each type of interaction
as well as an excellent section on synergistic vs. antagonistic interactions.
What follows is a rigorous treatment of experimental designs and key
differences to understand between their setup and their analysis. The author’s examples of design matrixes and how to create them is useful
and comprehensive.

The final chapters present case studies,
including the design matrix, data analysis, and interpretation, applications of
DoE in the service industry and the role of DoE within Six Sigma. This book is
not just for engineers and scientists. It is also a reference book for
practitioners and a good textbook for statisticians in all fields.

Baldrige criteria
principles can serve as an important framework for any organization committed
to standards of excellence. Striving to achieve these important principles,
however, is a long-term commitment requiring intensive internal scrutiny and
hard work. Vinyard’s work provides a highly detailed
discussion of the Baldrige Criteria for Performance
Excellence, focusing on the vital 42 areas to address when considering the Baldrige standards.

This hefty resource organizes the Baldrige criteria into five parts. To help leaders and
organizational architects better understand the Baldrige
criteria, the five parts covered are:

The fundamentals or keydesign
concepts of performance excellence.

The unique context of the organization as it
relates to the design of organizational systems.

The organization scorecard, including
comparisons to other world-class organizations.

The path to performance excellence, including
organization diagnosis, design and transformation.

Each section includes an introduction to the
basics of the particular area of the criteria being addressed. Included in this
edition is a CD-ROM that includes access to all of the information in the book,
including all of the assessment worksheets and tools, diagrams and charts. This
will make it much easier for any internal quality professional to adapt these tools to his or her own organizational needs.

Vinyard’s discussion
and explanation of the many Baldrige criteria,
numerous pragmatic examples and anecdotes from organizations and businesses
that have worked with the criteria—as well as received the
award—make this book an excellent investment. While other Baldrige resources focus on high-level strategy principles
of the criteria, this book is designed to provide a practical, hands-on guide
to all the criteria in a way that makes it highly recommended for any
organization or business that is seriously considering applying the Baldrige criteria in their organization.

Dale FarrisGroves, TX

The Scorecard Solution: Measure What Matters and Drive
Sustainable Growth

Dan E. King, Amacom,
2015, 288 pp., $29.95 (book).

King defines organizational prowess as
"leveraging data and talent to execute on strategic imperatives within
compressed timeframes." This book presents the concept of organizational
prowess and how the measurement of it through the use of a scorecard can be
leveraged and improved to create sustainable growth.

The metrics
generated by the scorecard measure organizational performance in business strategy,
planning and execution frameworks and talent. From the results, organizations
can determine whether they are agile, resilient, vulnerable or lagging. The
measured deficiencies then can be identified and improved. The book follows
multiple real-life cases of businesses that were vulnerable or lagging. It
shows how the implementation of the scorecard solution not only saved the
businesses, but also allowed them to thrive. The book also provides sample
scorecards, implementation guidelines and how to create a playbook to sustain
growth.

Though the book is written for middle to upper
management, the principles of evaluating the organizational prowess can be
applied to any team. The scorecard solution and the organization prowess
concept have the ability to create thriving organizations when implemented
properly.